Private Invasive Species

[Arlo Renard]

Somewhere in the underworld of Coruscant...

Claws skidded across the pavement. Four feet bounded across a puddle of dirty rainwater, splashing the sooty brick walls on either side of the alley. The air, thick with smog from a nearby factory, cast a cloudy film over the beast's vision.

Through the choked atmosphere, it smelled blood. The scent drove it crazy. It searched the fog for the source, drool trickling from its open mouth.

At last, it found its prey. The mangled corpse of an animal, freshly killed. A purple tongue slid over black lips before it pounced, jagged teeth tearing into maimed flesh.

From the roof of a nearby building, Kai watched as the trap was sprung. A net made of a substance stronger than durasteel scooped up the bait and the beast, leaving them hanging from a fire escape. Snapping its jaws, the beast struggled, gnawing on the ropes to no avail.

Kai leaped down to the fire escape, the metal frame rattling upon impact. He inspected the creature thrashing in the net like a fisherman surveying his catch. It belonged to a species he had never seen before. Non-sentient, from the looks of it. Definitely not native to Coruscant...

Disappearing around the corner, he returned in the driver's seat of a truck. He got out to load the net into the back, then resumed driving... only for the engine to suddenly sputter and die on him. The speeder hit the ground with an unceremonious thud, prompting a snarl from the backseat passenger. Kai heaved a sigh and took out his datapad, typing out a message...

Amani Serys​

 

[Amani Serys]

Amani did not make a habit of visiting Coruscant's lower levels, but the fact remained that it was one of the easiest places to find that which was hard to find.

She exited a seedy storefront with a handful of packages containing obscure supplies and medicines; Whatever methods the owner used to acquire them, Amani decided not to inquire. Just as she did, a speeder right outside hit the ground with a thud, giving her a startle. Amani stared at the vehicle for a beat, fighting an internal battle over her number one rule for the undercity:

Not my problem.

Naturally, that was never going to last with her. With a sigh she stepped to the curb, and waved at the driver for their attention. He didn't seem like a particularly shady individual.

"...Heyyy. You uh, need some help, or..?" Her gaze wandered to the back, where snarls and growls seemed to be emanating.

Arlo Renard​

 

[Arlo Renard]

Kai looked up from his datapad, peering out the speeder window at the green-skinned woman who had spoken. At first glance, he looked underage—too young to be driving, in fact. As he opened the door and stepped out, however, his features seemed to age rapidly into those of an adult. Weird. His youthful appearance must've been just a trick of the light...

<The engine crapped out on me,> he replied. Following her gaze toward his growling cargo, he then glanced back at the medicines in her arms. <Are you a doctor?>

The back of the truck rattled as the beast began to thrash around, trying to tear free of the net.

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

Amani stared incredulously at the man in the seat, before chalking up the apparent physical discrepancies to misinterpretation. "When the mood strikes… Why, do you need-"

The commotion intensified, distracting her enough that she quickly switched topics, "-Sorry, what the hell is that?"

Arlo Renard​

 

[Arlo Renard]

Kai didn’t directly answer her question. <I’m from the Galactic Society For the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. I came here to capture this creature, move it somewhere safe.> Kai gestured to the medicines she carried. <Do you have a sedative or a tranquilizer on you? It might help.>

He would prefer not to have to exercise the Force on the creature. Attempting an animal bond with a Sithspawn was a dangerous thing.

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

"Yeah, but not every creature responds the same way to the same things. I'll need to at least know what kind of thing this is to get the right one." In a galaxy of countless species, sapient or otherwise, medicine could be an understatedly complex field. And the applications for most of what she had on her were more specific, rather than general.

As good a reason as any to get more information out of this guy.

Arlo Renard​

 

[Arlo Renard]

<I don't know what species it is,> he admitted. <Only that it was wandering around here... and a little about its origins.>

But once again, he didn't actually say where the creature had come from. Turning away from her, he walked around to the back of the truck and hopped inside. The beast thrashed violently upon sensing it wasn't alone, jerking with enough force to shake the vehicle. Kai steadied himself, then crouched down and concentrated.

His body went tense, teeth grit and eyes squeezed shut. The creature eventually stopped fighting, its body going limp as it fell unconscious, but Kai still seemed to be straining himself, struggling against something unseen.

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

Amani followed behind as he went to the back, "Well, by all means, do share--"

The creature was certainly… uncommon. Coruscant was not exactly known for its aggressive, aberrant fauna. At least, not on this level of Coruscant. She began searching the contents of one of her packages for a tranquilizer that matched whatever classification this thing seemed to belong to. It took a double take before she realized that the man was not in a normal state.

"Hey? Hey!" Amani set down the supplies and hopped in next to him, shaking his shoulder in the hopes that it might knock him out of this stupor. She then reached out with the Force, hoping to establish some connection, "Talk to me."

Arlo Renard​

 

[Arlo Renard]

Amani's touch more than the sound of her voice served to ground Kai once again. He shivered, the tension in his body slow to release. Surreptitiously he glanced down at the ring on his finger, the amethyst stone that hid his corruption. It was best that she didn't know what he had nearly done, the temptation he felt merely reaching out to stun the beast.

<You have the Force,> he noted, a statement of fact rather than a question. <Then you can sense the Dark Side in this animal. It's a Sithspawn.>

Unlike Kai, the Sithspawn's corruption was on full display, a taint in its aura, blackening its presence in the Force.

<Others would just kill it. I want to treat it humanely,> he explained. <There's a place I can move it to, where it will be safe. It can't hurt anyone there. But I can't get there if the engine won't start.>

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

"I was starting to get that idea, yeah." Amani leaned over to study the creature's form. The sinister energy that encompassed it was of a kind she had not experienced in a long time. It made her shiver.

"You can do that?" Amani glanced around, intentionally trying not to focus too hard on the Sithspawn's darkness, "Um- I might be able to help with the truck, though my own speeder is also pretty close?" She pointed at a cheap vehicle down the street. Not the most comfortable fit, but better than nothing if they couldn't fix this.

Arlo Renard​

 

[Arlo Renard]

<How would you help with the truck?> he asked. Kai didn't relish the idea of moving the Sithspawn from one vehicle to another, even if it was stunned at the moment.

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

"Well, I dunno, I figured I'd check the engine to see what's wrong. Had to learn something useful while living on my own." Amani seemed mildly offended by his uncertainty.

"Unless you'd rather me just swing my jalopy over here. How long is that thing gonna be… like that for?"

Arlo Renard​

 

[Arlo Renard]

He'd been hoping she'd turn out to be a mechanic who moonlighted as a doctor, but no such luck. That, or maybe she knew a mechanic who could come out. He glanced at her vehicle, and wondered if it could even last long enough to get them to his ship.

<Maybe an hour or so,> he replied. Depending on how bad the problem was, a repair might take too long. With a sigh, Kai relented. <If you don't mind driving a stunned wild animal and a random stranger you just met to a private dock, I'd appreciate it.>

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

"I've done stupider for less," Amani shrugged and ran over to start up her speeder, deciding not to give herself the chance to think over her decision. The engine sputtered to life, clearly not in the greatest of shape itself, though she seemed confident enough. It only took a second to drive it over beside the dead truck, and Amani hopped right back out to offer help.

"It looks a bit shoddy, but it works. Some old stuff's just built sturdier, y'know?" Sure sometimes a part crapped out here or there, but then where else would she get the repair practice? The stuff that needed to work was reliable enough that it kept chugging.

"Gonna need a hand with this fella?"

Arlo Renard​

 

[Arlo Renard]

<Nah.>

Kai scooped up the net-bound Sithspawn with relative ease. It wasn't too hard to believe—his physique was athletic and muscular—but there was something a little off about how he lifted the creature and laid it in the back of the speeder, as if he were merely carrying a ragdoll.

He hurried around to the side of the vehicle, opened the door and got in. <Let me just punch in the coordinates...> he said, typing up the address of the private dock rapidly. <There.> He turned, waiting for Amani to get into the driver's seat. <Okay good, okay fine?>

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

"Suit yourself," Amani watched him tote the creature to the back, then hopped into the driver's seat. With a press of the pedal, and they were off to the races.

"Didn't know animal welfare groups extended to sithspawn," Amani struck up conversation, "You a Jedi?"

Arlo Renard​

 

[Arlo Renard]

<Yeah,> he answered, looking out the window at the passing scenery. <Most Jedi aren't interested in saving Sithspawn, though. I'm the founder of the GSPCA. And the only member.>

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

“Oh.” Guess that would explain why she hadn’t heard of them. Amani stayed quiet for a bit, her attention flicking between the coordinate tracker and the complex grid of streets ahead. She wasn’t a bad driver, but it was clear that helming a speeder was not her preferred method of transportation.

They hit a long stretch of road as they neared the destination, and she finally inquired further, “So why do you wanna save them?”

Arlo Renard​

 

[Arlo Renard]

Kai blinked, a bit surprised that she cared. <Because they're not inherently evil. Their corruption was inflicted upon them by others. I believe all life is sacred, and I save it when I can.>

He made no mention of his own Sithspawn nature, of course.

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

Amani smiled, "There's something I can get behind."

The nobility of his cause resonated with her. She had always been more of an 'all life is sacred' Jedi, rather than a 'Lightsaber first, ask questions later' one. And given she'd fallen to darkness herself, it lended something of an empathic perspective.

"The dark side is messy business. I've seen up close what it can do to people. But I've also seen people come back. So, happy to help, I guess is what I'm saying." She paused, "Plus I've always been an animal lover."

Arlo Renard​